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New Music: CHILDCARE

CHILDCARE are an enigmatic indie quartet based in London that have burst onto the music scene with as much energy as a toddler in a soft play centre. The band formed after frontman and former male nanny, Ed Cares, was overheard humming a tune he wrote by Katie aged six, who encouraged him to form a band – because who doesn’t listen to the honest advice of a six year old? After sourcing able bodied musicians from the area, the line up was set with Emma Topolski (vocals/bass), Rich Legate (guitar) and Glyn Daniels (drums) making up CHILDCARE as we see them today.

The track Kiss? is the follow-up to their highly revered debut single Film Club, the first record to give us a glimpse of what is to come on their upcoming EP. A witty, catchy song that fuses the best bits of indie and pop together; they are like The Wombats but cooler. CHILDCARE have the great ability to be able to infect your mind with catchy melodies that have listeners humming them all day. The track Kiss? is a rocky, post-punk 80s delight. They are like an edgier Summer Camp, with dual harmonies overlaying each other, driving beat and vocal. About a mundane kitchen-sink drama of a meeting between male nanny and mum in the playground, Kiss? is a well crafted piece of pop with a heap of English indie sensibility. It features a jagged guitar riff that gets stuck in your head, a stomping beat and anthemic vocals. At times Cares voice ranges from the shouty anarchistic Alex Turner circa 2009 to the crooning tones of Sting and The Police; wonderfully offset by the lighter, ‘Never forget this’ line of vocal from bassist Emma.

The band have just finished off 2016 supporting Bastille on their UK arena tour, and most recently have received recognition from BBC Radio 1’s Mista Jam as one of his new names for February. From what they have already given us, CHILDCARE’s new EP will no doubt be amazing and their talent should be celebrated. Kiss? is out now on Lost In The Manor Records.